These contributions will fund vulnerable Democrats in House and Senate races, according to the Sanders campaign.

As Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton leads in the polls, Democrats have turned their attention and funds to down ballot races, with hopes of reclaiming the Senate majority.

Democrats only need to pick up four seats in the Senate on November 8 if Clinton wins the presidency (if Trump wins, they need five). Only 10 seats held by Democrats are on the ballot this year; 24 seats held by Republicans are on the ballot. At time of writing, FiveThirtyEight's Senate forecast projects that Democrats have a 67.6 percent chance of retaking control of the chamber.

State Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), and former House Rep. Deborah Ross (D-N.C.) are both in close Senate races against their respective Republican opponents.

Sanders is also supporting candidates fighting for seats in the House of Representatives.

Big down-ballot wins for Democrats would make it easier for a Clinton presidency to govern and curtail the kind of congressional obstruction that President Barack Obama faced after the 2010 midterm elections.

ATTN: reached out to the offices of Bernie Sanders and Paul Ryan for comment and will update this post as necessary.